102 



Hn fifes and 

 Churches. 



A Voyage to 



7wm in 

 Chili. 



Number of 

 Inhabitants. 



Bull Feafts : The Eaft Side has nothing peculiar. In the 

 inidft of the Square is a Fountain, with a Brafs Bafon. 



The Structure of the Houfes is the fame as is ufed 

 throughout all Chilis they have only a Ground Floor, built 

 with unburnt Bricks, excepting that here they are hand- 

 fomer than elfewhere, and the Churches richer in gilding ; 

 but all the Architecture is of an ill Tafte, excepting that 

 of the Jefuites, which is a Latin Crofs,arch'd, on a Dorick 

 Order; they have all a fmall open Place before them for 

 the Conventency of Calaflies and of Procefllons : Moft of 

 them are built with Brick ; there are fome of regular Stone, 

 as alfo of fmall Stone, which they have from a fmall Rock 

 that is at the Eaft End of the City, call'd S. Lucy's Hill, 

 from the Top of which there is an entire View of all the 

 City and Parts adjacent, which afford a very agreeable 

 Landskip. 



This City is the Capital of Ghiti 3 a large Kingdom, but 

 fo ill peopled, that in 400 Leagues Extent from North to 

 South, there are fcarce five Towns better than our good 

 Villages, not including that we are fpeaking of. Thofe 

 Towns are Caftro in the Ifland of Chiloe, La Conception 

 or Penco, Chilian, Coquimbo or La Serena, and Copiapo : 

 There is a 6th beyond the Mountain call'd La Cordillera, 

 which is Mendoza, Thei>eft Boroughs are Maule, Valpa- 

 raiso, Quillota, Aconcagua, and S. John de la Cordillera, 

 where there are very rich Silver Mines; but which cannot 

 be wrought above four Months in the Year, becaufe of the 

 Snows. Throughout all the reft, there are only Farms, 

 which they call Eftancias, fo remote from one another, 

 that the whole Country, as I have been inform'd from 

 good Hands, cannot raife 20000 Whites fit to bear Arms, 

 and particularly Santiago 2000; the reft are all Meftizo's 

 Mulatto's, and Indians, whofe Number may be three Times 

 as great, without including the Friendly Indians beyond 

 the River Biobio, who are reckon'd to amount to 15000, 

 whofe Fidelity is not to be depended on. 



What 



